Garen

Overview

For Demacia! Garen is your favorite himbo’s favorite himbo and has gained much fame (or notoriety depending on how you view it) for being the master of sitting in a bush and hitting you with a stick as you check it. As a bruiser, he loves fighting and is a great champion pick for anyone looking to slug it out top lane. Click here for the latest data on his best builds, including Runes, Items, Summoner Spells, and more. 

Top 3 Things to Remember About Garen

1. Garen’s passive regenerates his health and can help you stay in lane for longer as long as you give time between trades. 

2. Judgment, AKA “Spin-to-Win” is going to be your primary damage source early game, and is easily comboed with an opening Decisive Strike to close the gap. 

3. Press R when they are low. Jokes aside, Garen is very straight forward. You build leads with your superior trading between passive heal and W shield, and then all-in once you have them in lethal range. 

Strengths

Garen’s trading pattern is simple and forgiving. As long as you hit the enemy and then back off and wait for your passive to tick and get your cooldowns back, you will out-sustain many enemy top laners. A Garen that is able to get ahead early is going to be very difficult for enemy teams to deal with as it can feel like he just literally runs at them and kills them with point-and-click abilities. Garen is also versatile in that he can build for more damage or more tank depending on what your team needs. 

Weaknesses

Against competent players that can space properly, Garen will need to be able to find good flanks and alternate angles to approach from if he wants to reach the backline. Without a true gap closer or any form of hard CC, Garen is very susceptible to being kited. He has a simple kit to pick up, which makes it a simple kit to counter. 

Game Plan 

1. Early Game: Garen should look to trade once he has his abilities all unlocked, and then use the passive and the Courage Shield to secure a health lead. It’s alright to play a bit passive or focus more on clearing minions.

2. Mid Game: Once your Demacian Justice is online, you’ll want to do your best to keep the enemy HP bar from remaining topped off. Taking even losing trades can bait the enemy into overstaying their welcome and entering execute range. Look for fights either way -- Garen is strongest in the mid game! 

3. Late Game: By late game, Garen can often feel outclassed and out-scaled. If you’re able to find a good flank angle, that could be enough to get a pick on a squishy champion, but against a competent team, it may be more prudent to play front-to-back and peel for your carries.